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Interview: The New Deal
US union leader Amy Dean expands on her agenda to give unions a real political voice
Unions: In the Line of Hire
Unions have lobbied and negotiated in a bid to stem casualisation and insecurity. Now, Jim Marr, writes they are seeking protection through a formal Test Case.
Culture: Too Cool for the Collective?
Young people are amongst the most vulnerable in the workforce. So why aren't they joining the union, asks Carly Knowles
International: The Domino Effect
An internal struggle in the biggest and strongest industrial union in Germany IG Metall has had a devastating wave effect across not just that country, but also the rest of Europe, writes Andrew Casey.
Industrial: A Spanner in the Works
Max Ogden looks at the vexed issue of Works Councils and the differing views within the union movement to them.
National Focus: Gathering of the Tribes
Achieving a fairer society and a better working life for employees from across Australia will be key themes at the ACTU's triennial Congress meeting later this month reports Noel Hester.
History: The Welcome Nazi Tourist
Rowan Cahill looks at the role Australia's conservatives played in supporting facism in the days before World War II.
Bad Boss: Domm, Domm Turn Around
Frank Sartor might have shot through but Robert Domm still calls the IR shots at Sydney City which pretty much explains why the council is this month�s Bad Boss nominee.
Poetry: Just Move On.
Visiting bard Maurie Fairfield brightens up our page with a ditty about little white lies.
Review: Reality Bites
The workers, united, may never be defeated but if recent episodes of Channel 10 drama The Secret Life Of Us are to be believed, this is not necessarily a good thing, writes Tara de Boehmler.
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Labor Council of NSW
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IT Workers Alliance
Bosswatch
Unions on LaborNET
Evatt Foundation
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L A T E S T N E W S |
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Tough Women Draw Line at Sacking
Being kicked, bitten, punched and scratched is all part of the job for Rachel Hodges, Megan Colman and their workmates at Dural. But when the Autism Association sacked their boss they walked off on the job in disgust.
The disability support workers this week rejected an IRC recommendation to return to work, holding out for the reinstatement of team leader, Jennifer Cumming, who was dismissed for refusing to cut
staffing levels at the day care facility. [full story]
Witness Protection Urged on IRC
The NSW Industrial Relations Commission will be asked to provide indemnities for workers giving evidence in a ground-breaking Secure Employment Test Case.
NSW Labor Council assistant secretary, Chris Christodoulou, confirmed this week that several potential witnesses would only put their heads above the parapet if the IRC moved to protect them from retribution. [full story]
Max Swings Axe at Safety
Max Moore-Wilton is ignoring safety and security fears, highlighted by the failure of contracting at Adelaide Airport, in a bid to put an extra $380 million into the pockets of private investors, critics claim.
The boss at Sydney�s privatised international airport is contracting out 160 jobs in a re-run of the debacle that saw Adelaide Airport punt contractors and re-employ maintenance staff after a series of alarming incidents. [full story]
Sick Twist in Drug Testing
Qantas has outraged its workforce by proposing targeted drug and alcohol testing of all workers who take sick leave.
Under the plan, the airline would test sick workers not just for illegal, but also prescription drugs, with workers who refuse the test facing dismissal. [full story]
Sacked Mum Goes to the Top
Unions are demanding that Communications Minister Richard Alston intervene to have a Melbourne Mum reinstated to the Telstra job she lost the day she returned from maternity leave.
ACTU president Sharan Burrow waded into the debate over 29-year-old, Anne-Marie, calling her situation "fundamental" to working women. [full story]
Cuts Sour ADB Birthday Bash
Twenty-fifth anniversary celebrations for the NSW Anti-Discrimination Board have fallen flat, with staff striking over massive funding cuts.
ADB workers walked off the job to rally outside the Governor Macquarie Tower where ADB acting president Laurie Glanfield had invited guests to commemorate the occasion. [full story]
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ALSO MAKING NEWS |
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Howard Enlists Russians for Military
Vic Workcover Invests in Worker Misery
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Whistleblower Sacking Sparks Zoo Walkout
Truckie With Conscience Wins Back Job
Indigenous Labour honours Tobler
Asbestos Blocks Liverpool Road Works
Activist Notebook
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The Soapbox
Fighting Words
Craig Emerson gave what could be the most spirited Labor spray in a decade to the NSW Labor Council this month. Here it is in all its venom. Education
Out of Their Class
Phil Bradley argues that Australia's education system should not be up for negotiation in the global trade talks. The Locker Room
The ABC of Sport
Phil Doyle argues that the only way to end the corporate madness that is sport, is to give it all back to the ABC. Postcard
Locks, Stocks and Barrels
Union Aid Abroad's Peter Jennings updates on the situation in Burma, where the repression of democracy is going from bad to worse.
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